Chapter 74

On the surface of the Weyuan River, Xunxin and the others were launching various attacks against the Sea Demon. The battle had been ongoing for half an hour. Although the Sea Demon had not been able to approach the shore due to the resistance of the group, this prolonged battle was disadvantageous for the Servants. On one side was a Caster supported by a nearly infinite supply of magical power from a magic book, while on the other side, the Servants' magical power had a limit, and unexpected events frequently occurred on the battlefield.

"What?!"

Xunxin, who was in the sky, let out a cry of surprise, drawing the attention of Rider and Artoria. However, the King of Knights soon understood why Xunxin had cried out. The F-15 fighter jet piloted by Berserker suddenly changed its mode of action, no longer targeting the Sea Demon. The F-15 performed an incredible spin in the air and aimed the Gatling gun at Artoria, who was running on the water. The gun, capable of firing 3,000 rounds per minute, created a web of metal death. The bullets, corrupted by magic and transformed into Noble Phantasms, could cause fatal damage to Servants. Artoria had to move irregularly at high speed on the water to avoid the bullets.

"Damn, Berserker has lost control. Saber, try to avoid Berserker's attacks. I'll take care of him." Xunxin calculated the trajectory of the F-15 and, seizing the opportunity, sent the Moonlight Blade through a spatial channel. The blade, glowing with a cold light, was aimed directly at the F-15. Due to the suddenness and stealth of the spatial ability, Berserker did not notice the blade suspended in the air. The blade, with its spatial distortion effect, easily split the F-15 from the nose to the tail, and the F-15 exploded in the air. Berserker, losing his foothold, fell from the sky and picked up an unlaunched AIM Sidewinder missile, throwing it at Saber. The missile ignited in the air and, under Berserker's will, rushed towards Saber. With the added power of magic, Saber leaped just as the missile approached, dodging the attack. The missile, missing its target, twisted and turned on the water, attacking the King of Knights again. In the air, the King of Knights had no way to avoid this attack and could only take a gamble, preparing to destroy the missile with the Wind King's Hammer. The King of Knights aimed the sword at the missile, but a powerful force from behind pulled him away, and the scenery blurred. Next, he found himself in the hands of the red Saber's Master. This time, the missile had lost its ability to instantly change direction, as the thrusters and tail fins were damaged to the limit. The missile, wrapped in dark red patterns, hit the Sea Demon, burning a large piece of its flesh to ashes.

"Thank you for your assistance, and could you please release your hand from my waist? It makes me feel very uncomfortable." Hearing the King of Knights' words, Xunxin opened a spatial channel and sent Artoria back to the battlefield. It wasn't that Xunxin didn't want to continue holding the famous King of Knights; the Moonlight Blade began to vibrate when Xunxin embraced Artoria's waist, and his mind was filled with chaotic thoughts. Only after letting Artoria down did the Moonlight Blade calm down.

"Xunxin, you are so perverted, holding that flat-chested King of Knights for so long. Do you actually like such underdeveloped, always teenage girls? That's really sick, huh... My full figure doesn't attract you at all?"

"Yueyue, stop talking. I'm starting to feel abnormal..." Both of them were distracted in the air, almost getting hit by the Sea Demon's tentacles. A purple magical array with a radius of no less than ten meters appeared in their hands, and with a thunderous roar, a hundred bolts of lightning descended from the sky. Even with its regenerative abilities, the Sea Demon could not avoid the biological weakness. Under the attack of hundreds of billion-volt high-voltage electric bolts, the Sea Demon's body temporarily lost its ability to move, allowing the Servants to catch their breath. Just as the scene became slightly quieter, a gunshot broke the situation on the battlefield.

On the shore, Caster's Master, Yusheng Longzhi, lay on the ground, a large hole in his abdomen caused by an anti-material sniper rifle. Intestines and stomach fragments mixed with bright red, pure blood gushed out, mesmerizing the young artist.

"So that's why I couldn't find it. I never thought that what I was looking for was right beside me." Before Yusheng Longzhi could finish his thoughts, a second bullet passed through his head, shattering his skull. Brain matter mixed with white, mud-like brain tissue was carried by the bullet's immense kinetic energy and scattered on the asphalt. This artist, a murderer of hundreds, finally received the punishment from what he believed to be a savior of the world—Einzbern Kiritsugu.

The Sea Demon suddenly stopped moving. Just as the Servants thought Caster had lost his Master and would return to the Throne of Heroes, the Sea Demon moved again, even more wildly and larger.

"Longzhi, my Master, you left me first. But it's okay, I will offer you the ultimate cool here." As Caster spoke, the Sea Demon desperately moved towards the shore. Realizing that without a Master, he would disappear from the world in less than half an hour, Caster targeted the people on the shore, knowing that by consuming flesh, he could gain new magical power. Ignoring his own injuries, he even moved to avoid the injured areas, showing his desperation.

"This is really troublesome." One of the divine bulls pulling the chariot of the Conqueror King was accidentally caught by the Sea Demon's tentacles. No matter how the Conqueror King pulled the reins, he could not free the bull. Seeing the Conqueror King's predicament, Kenshin, from a distance, used a Ki Blade to cut the tentacles. The freed bull used its hooves to summon lightning, burning the approaching tentacles and pulling the Conqueror King's chariot out of danger.

Xunxin unfolded the Sword Qi Wings behind him, increasing the casting area. A huge ice-blue magical array from a high-magic world appeared in the air, with a large number of magical runes rotating and emitting a chilling cold. Seeing Xunxin about to use a possibly highly destructive magic, the three Servants immediately retreated behind Xunxin, and even Gilgamesh, who was watching from the air, ascended to avoid being affected. A light pillar, like an aurora, burst from the magical array towards the bottom of the Sea Demon. The water instantly froze where the light pillar touched. Carefully controlling the stability of the magical array, Xunxin lifted it, and the aurora illuminated the Sea Demon's massive body from bottom to top. The Sea Demon's surface, covered in mucus and thick fluids, instantly turned into ice crystals. The extremely cold beam completely froze the Sea Demon's body, and after reaching the top, it thinned and disappeared. Not only the Sea Demon, but even the nearby water turned into a nearly ten-meter-thick ice layer.

"Wow!!! That was a terrifying attack, Xunxin." The Conqueror King drove the Divine Chariot to Xunxin's side. "Now Caster shouldn't be able to move. We just need to wait for a while, and Caster will return to the Throne of Heroes."

"I'm afraid it's not that simple." Xunxin lowered his arm and carefully observed the Sea Demon. "The ice on the Sea Demon's body is already cracking, and these ice blocks can only delay it for a few minutes. Moreover, I'm not skilled in ice magic, and the magical power consumption is several times higher than other types of magic." As Xunxin spoke, the Sea Demon's body was already making cracking sounds. This creature could not be judged by normal standards; even when completely frozen, it could still struggle. Furthermore, the part of the Sea Demon under the water absorbed most of the magic's power, and the aurora had little effect on the underwater part, so the Sea Demon might still be able to move using the parts that were not frozen.

"Ah, this is really bad..." The Conqueror King signaled to the King of Knights, and after the group reached the shore, he looked around and said, "The problem now is that Caster's existence in the real world has exceeded our expectations. Although Xunxin used a powerful magic to bind Caster, it's clear that this magic won't stop the creature for long. We need to find a way to completely eliminate it."

"I have a way to deal with this evil Caster." The King of Knights raised his holy sword. "My Noble Phantasm, Excalibur, is an A++-ranked city-destroying Noble Phantasm. One strike should be enough to completely defeat this creature. However, the creature is under the water, and my attack might not be strong enough to destroy the part under the water due to the decay of power."

Hearing the King of Knights' words, the Conqueror King laughed and patted his broad chest. "Don't worry, King of Knights. I have a way to throw this creature into the air. When the time comes, you can release your Noble Phantasm to finish off the Sea Demon. No problem, right?"

"Yes, I promise. This sword will bring victory to all." The invisible sword created a storm in the sky, and the Wind King's Barrier began to dissolve from the bottom of the sword. The legendary supreme holy sword, Excalibur, revealed its glory for the first time, its pure, golden light illuminating the faces of the group. The light of victory pierced the sky, dispelling the dirty and murky fog brought by the Sea Demon.

"This is... the legendary... Excalibur of King Arthur..."

"Truly worthy of the Holy King's sword."

"..." Like seeing a ray of light in a long night, the anxiety and unease in everyone's hearts were swept away by this light, and they were filled with the belief of victory. The Conqueror King placed Weber, his Master, on the ground.

"Then, my little Master, I entrust you to this. Boy, I will pull Caster and the creature into my Fixed Territory. When the time comes, you will guide me to the position where the Sea Demon will be released. I will send a messenger to your side."

"Messenger? Rider, I've never seen your Noble Phantasm. What kind of Noble Phantasm is it?" Weber shouted from under the chariot, but the Conqueror King waved his hand.

"Don't worry, Xunxin knows what to do. He will release a lighting magic at the position where I will appear, and you just need to tell the messenger." Without waiting for Weber to ask more, the Conqueror King drove the Divine Chariot again. Taking advantage of the Sea Demon being trapped in the ice, the Conqueror King quickly approached the Sea Demon. The space around the Sea Demon distorted, and bright white light surrounded it. With a blinding glow, the Sea Demon disappeared from everyone's sight.

"Time is of the essence, King of Knights, go to the center of the river. Weber, when the messenger from Rider arrives, the position where I release the white light ball will be where Rider releases the Sea Demon." Xunxin unfolded the blue-purple Sword Qi Wings and flew over the river, the air pressure from his flight even separating the water, exposing the riverbed. Almost simultaneously, a soldier appeared kneeling beside Weber.

"I am Mithrenes, a member of the Royal Guard, here to follow the King's orders!" The other Servants, who did not know about Rider's Noble Phantasm, looked in surprise at the new Servant. The magical power emanating from this Servant was almost as strong as Assassin's shadow, but he claimed to be the Conqueror King's Royal Guard, meaning that the Conqueror King's Noble Phantasm could summon his subjects from life to the real world.

"It seems everything is ready." The King of Knights was already in the center of the river, and the soldier sent by the Conqueror King had appeared. A large, pure white light ball appeared in Xunxin's right hand and quickly flew out, bursting into bright white light about a kilometer away from the King of Knights. Seeing Xunxin's signal, Weber immediately pointed to the position where the white light was shining.

"Right there! Directly below the white light ball!" The Servant Mithrenes nodded and disappeared. Then, a spatial fluctuation appeared over the Weyuan River, and a huge, purple-red, tentacle-covered mass of flesh slowly descended. The Conqueror King drove the divine bulls at high speed, quickly leaving the area where the King of Knights' Noble Phantasm might affect.

A faint, firefly-like light rose from the surface of the Weyuan River, gathering on the golden holy sword raised by the King of Knights. The light from Excalibur illuminated the entire night sky, and the scattered magical power stirred the water. The King of Knights poured all his strength into the wrists gripping the sword, as if illuminating this holy sword was his lifelong pursuit. Artoria, the King of Knights, breathed, and with the red dragon bloodline, each breath produced astonishing magical power, known as the Magic Furnace. This power continuously flowed into the